Cessna 172N accident near Olive Branch, Mississippi, October 21, 2003
On October 21, 2003 at about 2:10 pm local time, a Cessna 172N, registered N75510, was substantially damaged in an accident near Olive Branch, Mississippi (Olive Branch Airport). It was an instructional flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was killed. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The student pilot's failure to maintain airspeed (Vso), which resulted in an inadvertent stall/spin, an uncontrolled descent, and an impact with terrain. A factor in the accident was his failure to follow the airplane's operating checklist and retract the wing flaps for takeoff.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- October 21, 2003 · about 2:10 pm local time
- Place
- Olive Branch, Mississippi · Olive Branch Airport · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 172N · all 172Ns on the register
- Registration
- N75510 · no longer on the register · serial 17267771
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
Witnesses stated that the airplane had just taken off from runway 18, and during the initial climb they saw it in a nose-high pitch attitude. They further stated that about 75 to 100 feet in the air they saw the airplane suddenly turn to the east, and descend straight down, impacting the ground. Examination of the wreckage showed that the airplane's flaps had been set to 20 degrees, and no preaccident anomalies were noted to exist with the airplane's airframe, flight controls, or engine. At the time of the accident, the student had accumulated a total of 39.7 hours total flight experience, and he was conducted his third solo flight. The student's flight instructor had specified in an endorsement he had provided to the student for solo flight, that solo flights be performed in a Cessna 172 , and that the flights be conducted at the Olive Branch Airport, when crosswinds were less than 5 knots. The reported surface winds at the Olive Branch Airport, Olive Branch, Mississippi, were from 270 degrees at 8 knots, gusting to 14 knots. The pilot's operating handbook for the airplane specifies that flap settings in excess of 10 degrees are not approved for takeoff.
The complete narrative as the NTSB published it. The NTSB's docket holds the report as a PDF and any photographs, statements and other documents from the investigation.
The factual record from the NTSB's investigation tables, in plain English
Pilot
- Certificate: student
- Flight time: 39 hours in all; 39 in this make and model; 18 in the last 90 days; 5 in the last 30 days; 2 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
- Injury: fatal
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 9,395 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, October 14, 2003; 14 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,300 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-320-H2AD (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: OLV Olive Branch MS at 1:00 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 18, 6,000 ft by 100 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 270° at 8 knots, gusting 14
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 66°F (19°C), dew point 55°F (13°C)
- Altimeter: 30.04 inHg
- Observation at 2:00 pm from OLV
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 |
Documents from the investigation the NTSB's docket: the evidence folder behind the report
The docket, the folder of records gathered during an investigation (maintenance records, photographs, witness statements, examinations), has not been read from the NTSB for this case yet; the list appears here once it has. Open the docket at the NTSB.
Everything on this page comes from the NTSB's public records. The narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words; the coded tables behind the report are written out in plain English, with pilots' ages, home towns and medical details left out. The documents and photographs are the NTSB's docket, shown as the NTSB released them. This site's own text never names anyone involved. A preliminary report can change; the final report usually follows one to two years later, and the page is refreshed when it does.